What are the best coffee brands in Ethiopia? The difference between Panama Geisha and Gesha Village Geisha

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FrontStreet Coffee - Knowledge Sharing on Panama Geisha and Geisha Village Geisha

Ethiopian coffee mainly has nine major producing regions: Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, Harar, Limu, Lekempti, Illubabor, Jimma, Teppi, and Bebeka.

Yirgacheffe is a small town in eastern Ethiopia with an altitude of 1800-2000m. In the ancient language, "Yirga" means "settle down" and "Cheffe" means "wetland." Yirgacheffe belongs to the Sidamo region and is highly favored among specialty coffee enthusiasts worldwide for its unique jasmine aroma and citrus acidity. This special flavor profile is known as the "Yirgacheffe taste." Based on defect rates, Yirgacheffe is classified into five grades from G1 to G5, generally using washed processing, but some exceptional beans are deliberately processed using natural methods to enhance charming fruit flavors and body.

The Sidamo region is very close to Yirgacheffe and has very similar flavor profiles. Through refined washed or natural processing, it also exhibits floral and citrus notes with smooth acidity, matching Yirgacheffe in prestige. Like Yirgacheffe, this variety has medium-sized beans, but there are also dwarf small-grain varieties. Sidamo coffee is typically lightly to medium roasted to preserve the variety's bright acidity and intoxicating floral aroma.

Geisha seeds were originally collected in the 1930s from the wild Kaffa forest in southwestern Ethiopia when people were searching for new disease-resistant coffee varieties. The name Geisha comes from the nearby Gesha Mountain. Geisha seeds were first taken to Tanzania and then to Costa Rica, where the Tropical Agricultural Research Center (CATIE) labeled them as T2722. In the 1950s and 1960s, T2722 was planted in some coffee farms as a disease-resistant variety but was not widely cultivated due to low yields.

In 2003, the Peterson family of Panama discovered the high-quality potential of this coffee at their farm Hacienda La Esmeralda. They began large-scale cultivation and sale of this coffee, which later won a series of "Best of Panama" coffee competitions and repeatedly set price records at auctions year after year.

Since then, farmers in Central America and other regions have rushed to plant Geisha. However, it seems that Geisha's high-quality potential can only be fully realized under specific conditions, meaning not all Geisha possesses the extraordinary characteristics that made this variety famous.

Panama Geisha has a long, pointed shape, while Geisha Village Geisha has an oval shape; Panama Geisha leans toward floral and fruit tea flavors, while Geisha Village Geisha leans toward floral and fruit aromas.

Knowledge Extension

Gesha1931 was confirmed by observing plant morphology, bean shape, size, and its cupping profile. It is the parent plant of recent Panama Geisha.

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